Las Vegas Sphere Revenues Jumps Higher Thanks To Wizard of Oz and Residencies

The Vegas Sphere experiment was supposed to be risky. A glowing billion-dollar orb in the desert built by James Dolan sounded less like a business plan and more like the plot of a sci-fi movie. In the beginning, they struggled a bit financially. Now, their revenue is beating every expectation. Newly released Q1 earnings, Sphere Entertainment posted $386.4 million in revenue for the quarter. This is a 38% year-over-year jump, with the Sphere division alone generating $266 million. Even more impressive? The company actually swung into profitability, reporting operating income of $7.2 million after bleeding cash this same time last year. The biggest driver wasn’t even a concert residency. It was The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, the venue’s immersive cinematic experience that has quietly turned into a monster business. Since launching last summer, the production has reportedly generated more than $370 million in total revenue and sold nearly 3 million tickets. For Dance Music, Illenium’s residency was part of this boost. Insomniac and Tomorrowland’s partnership, Unity, also sold incredibly well. Outside of dance, Phish sold out its recent 9-run show. Metallica is selling out 24 concerts this fall, and Backstreet Boys plans for a second 21-show residency this summer. Wall Street has completely flipped its tone on the company. Analysts who previously questioned whether Sphere was scalable are now discussing global expansion opportunities, including planned venues in Abu Dhabi and outside Washington. The post Las Vegas Sphere Revenues Jumps Higher Thanks To Wizard of Oz and Residencies appeared first on EDMTunes.